It is rather rare but car tyres may happen to be defective or to fail you as a buyer for any reason. But can you ever complain about the tyres you have bought? We routinely get warranty on most products we purchase so why shouldn’t we get warranty on tyres too? Actually, we do get it as standard but people rarely claim it on such products as tyres. 

What is tyre warranty?

Tyre warranty is as valid as with any other product, but problems with massed-produced products such as tyres are fairly rare. However, if you do find a problem, it’s always best to get on to the manufacturer quickly.

Warranty usually covers a range of issues such as:

  • Millage: a road tyre is designed to operate correctly for a certain number of miles each year, and if it wears excessively during normal usage, the manufacturer may give you pro-rata money back.
  • Road hazards: Most manufacturers offer warranty for damage from road failures such as potholes within the first year or 2/32’s of wear.
  • Workmanship: If your tyre suffers a failure due to poor materials or sub-standard workmanship, the manufacturer is likely to pay out. One of the most common workmanship failures is known as uniformity, where a non-uniform structure can lead to excessive vibration felt through the steering wheel or seats.

Generally, tyre warranty does not cover the following types of tyre damage:

  • Road hazards, including, without limitation: tyre puncture, tyre cut, impact break, stone drill, bruise, bulge, or snag.
  • Improper use or operation, including, without limitation: improper tyre inflation pressure, overloading, wheel spinning, curbing, use of an improper rim/wheel, misuse, misapplication, negligence, tyre alteration, or for racing or competition purposes.
  • Insufficient or improper maintenance, including: wheel misalignment, worn suspension components, improper tyre mounting or demounting, tyre/wheel assembly imbalance, improper brake adjustment, or other vehicle conditions or defects.
  • Contamination or degradation by petroleum products or other chemicals, fire or other externally generated heat, water or other material trapped inside the tyre during mounting or inflation.

How to complain about a tyre warranty problem

So, you can void any warranty in a number of ways, but how would you go about claiming for what you believe is a warranty problem? In the first instance, you should always return the tyre to the retail from whom you purchased it, together with the original receipt. In this way, the retailer will be able to verify if the tyre is still in its warranty period, and to state whether the damage constitutes a warranty failure. 

If the cause of the tyre problem isn’t easy to determine, the retailer may want to remove the tyre from the wheel and send it back to the manufacturer for further investigation. In this case, you should be ready to fit your spare tyre – or buy a new one for the empty wheel - while the investigation is going on. In the event that your warranty claim is upheld, you will receive compensation for the original tyre.

What are the current tyre warranties offered by the tyre companies? Here is our tyre warranty comparison of major manufacturers.

Tyre manufacturers’ warranty periods in 2020

Bridgestone warranty

All Bridgestone tyres are covered by a standard warranty period of five years from date of manufacture.

Michelin warranty

Michelin tyres come with a 60-day money back guarantee if you are not 100% satisfied, as well as 3-years road-side assistance if your tyres fail. Their standard warranty is 6 years from date of purchase. Provided you have applied appropriate tyre care.

Goodyear-Dunlop warranty

This manufacturer offers just twenty-four months or 24,000 miles, whichever comes first, and is dependent upon the tyre being used in line with the manufacturer’s guidelines.

Pirelli warranty

Much shorter than many of the others, Pirelli tyres are sold with a warranty of twenty four months from the date of purchase. This is dependent upon the failure being established as not caused by the user.

Sumitomo warranty

This newish Japanese company has an extensive warranty policy, covering many different aspects of use and abuse, but for non-customer-initiated failures, they offer a six-year from date of purchase warranty.

Yokohama warranty

Yokohama tyres come with a warranty for legally-used tyres for sixty months from the date of purchase or seventy two months from the date of manufacture. A proof of purchase is always required.

Hankook warranty

This manufacturer doesn’t specify a time period for warranty but they do state that it is in force for tyres that are still legal via the Tread Wear Indicators (TWI’s) and have not been subject to any kind of abuse.

Toyo warranty

The Toyo tyre company will replace any tyre that is found to be defective due to the manufacturing process or materials used, or found to have any unrepairable damage resulting from normal road use. There is no time dependence on this.

Nokian warranty

Nokian will replace any tyre that is found to be defective or has manufacturing damage that is not a result of user abuse for a period of five years from the date of purchase.

Cooper warranty

This company will replace tyres with defects provided that there is at least 3mm of tyre tread left – as determined by the tyres TWI’s – without a time limit.

Maxxis warranty

The Maxxis tyre company will replace defective tyres that are otherwise legal without any time limit.

Hangzhou warranty

This Chinese manufacturer will replace any tyre with a manufacturing defect provided that it has more than 50% of its usable tread depth left.

Kumho warranty

The Kumho Company will replace any tyre with a manufacturing defect as long as it has more than 1.6mm if tread depth – as indicated by the TWI’s – and is within six years of its original purchase date.

All major tyre companies understand the importance of having their clients satisfied and keeping their trust. For that reason, they offer tyre warranties that cover a reasonable range of damage types. If you are in doubt or have any questions regarding tyre life, damage or the complexities surrounding the warranty of your tyres, retailer’s or manufacturer’s representatives can advise you. For extra protection, you can also consider buying additional car tyre insurance.